Wisconsin native, conservative critic of everything.
"Once abolish the God, and the government becomes the God." ---G K Chesterton
"The only objective of Liberty is Life" --G K Chesterton
"Fallacies do not cease to be fallacies because they become fashions" --G K Chesterton
"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition." -- Rudyard Kipling

Thursday, February 11, 2010

The Screed Against BPA

It’s bad enough that any outside entity should try to exert influence over the FDA’s decision-making process. Thankfully, the FDA ignored the Journal Sentinel, and just announced that it considers BPA to be safe, while reasonably calling for continued studies.

That's only the beginning...

In this case, the Journal Sentinel attempted to change society’s attitude – so that we permit and even expect a newspaper to influence public policy…even when the facts underlying a policy decision have not even been determined!

...The message that the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wanted to spread is, “We’re all going to die! Or get cancer! Or both!” Of all human emotions, fear is the easiest to create, the hardest to shake, and the most damaging to society. Bertrand Russell, the social activist and the founder of analytic philosophy, told us, “Collective fear stimulates herd instinct, and tends to produce ferocity toward those who are not regarded as members of the herd.”

Russell was right, of course. Fear works both sides of the aisle; while Obama promises doom if healthcare and carbon-taxes are not implemented......TODAY!!!.......the other guys tell us that Obama's ideological tax-and-spend binge will also lead to doom.

Of course, the 'other guys' are right.

But we digress.

...The greatest enemy of fear is the truth. So what is the truth about BPA? It’s a plastic that’s laminated on your glasses to keep them from shattering. It’s also used in sports helmets and goggles; your car’s headlight lenses; injected into all of your DVDs, CDs, and Blu-ray discs; injected into your iPod cases; used to help soften baby bottles; applied to your laptop cases; and even used to protect large display signs; and is a protective coating used on the interior of metal cans to prevent corrosion and contamination.

Dozens of studies have been conducted — in both short and long-term animal tests, multi-generational exposure studies, reproductive effects, and examining cancerous effects. Weight-of-evidence analysis, including studies done by the FDA; the UK Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food; The UK Dept. of Trade and Industry; The Japanese National Institute of Health Sciences; and Society of Plastics Industry, Inc all clearly conclude that BPA does not migrate in any significant amount from, or cause adverse effects from, exposure through consumer products.

You would have to cram 1,300 pounds of food that was in contact with a BPA-lined can or bottle, every single day for your entire life, into your body in order to exceed the EPA’s safety levels of BPA.

Kinda like the way DDT and saccharine were misrepresented. In fact, almost exactly the same way.